Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said that the results of the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections for four seats in the Union Territory will clearly show which parties stand with or against the BJP.
The biennial elections for the seats, vacant since 2021, are scheduled for October 24.
“This election will reveal who supports the BJP and who opposes it. Over the past year, not a single party has stood with the BJP, and on its own, it cannot win even one seat,” Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar.
He added that if the BJP manages to win any seat, it would be due to “money power, muscle power, and the influence of central agencies.”
Abdullah said the National Conference (NC) would also field a candidate for the fourth seat. “We had announced three candidates and believed Congress had the best chance for the fourth, but they thought otherwise,” he said.
Rejecting speculation about sidelining NC president Farooq Abdullah, the chief minister said, “There’s no question of that. He is an asset and the tallest leader of Jammu and Kashmir — one of the most respected leaders in the country. Who would dare to deny him if he wished to contest the Rajya Sabha polls?”
He also ruled out Farooq Abdullah contesting the Budgam Assembly bypoll. “A person who decided not to contest the Rajya Sabha polls would not subject himself to the rigours of an assembly campaign,” Omar Abdullah said.
The chief minister added that the candidates for the Budgam and Nagrota bypolls would be announced in due course.
